James Gurney

This daily weblog by Dinotopia creator James Gurney is for illustrators, plein-air painters, sketchers, comic artists, animators, art students, and writers. You'll find practical studio tips, insights into the making of the Dinotopia books, and first-hand reports from art schools and museums.

CG Art

Contact

or by email:gurneyjourney (at) gmail.comSorry, I can't give personal art advice or portfolio reviews. If you can, it's best to ask art questions in the blog comments.

Permissions

All images and text are copyright 2015 James Gurney and/or their respective owners. Dinotopia is a registered trademark of James Gurney. For use of text or images in traditional print media or for any commercial licensing rights, please email me for permission.

However, you can quote images or text without asking permission on your educational or non-commercial blog, website, or Facebook page as long as you give me credit and provide a link back. Students and teachers can also quote images or text for their non-commercial school activity. It's also OK to do an artistic copy of my paintings as a study exercise without asking permission.

Wednesday, April 5, 2017

Bruno Liljefors (Swedish, 1860-1939) painted this dramatic scene of a pine marten jumping up to capture a black grouse hen. The marten appears at the top of its leap, its rear feet upraised and its tail in a blur.

The drybrush handling of watercolor and gouache gives the forest textures a nervous energy. Liljefors frequently painted scenes like this outdoors, with dead specimens rigged into position with strings and wires.

Liljefors, capercallie

He also observed and sketched living animals first-hand, both in the wild and in captivity. For a while he kept his own menagerie, but he was aware that the animals looked and behave differently in cages than they do in the wild.

Some detractors in his day complained that his work looked unfinished because he didn't paint every leaf or hair.

Portrait of Liljefors by Zorn

"Truly, you cannot count the feathers on that duck's wing.
But, let me ask, do you ever see the leaves as you search for some
living creature in the mysterious depths of forest foliage? You'd
have to look too sharp for that. And if you do see the creature,
does it occur to you to count the feathers in its wings, even if it stays long enough for you to detect its species?"

"Truly you cannot count the feathers on that duck's wing.",... to quote Liljefors.

If I may add another quote:

"If Art's service is but to imitate Nature, then burn all the picture galleries and let us have instead photographic studios. It is becaus Art reveals what Nature hides that a small picture is worth more than all the jewels of the millionaires and the treasures of the princes."